


The Thing About Fanboys

by shamefulmorana



Category: Polygon/McElroy Vlogs & Podcasts RPF, Real Person Fiction, youtube - Fandom
Genre: Comedy, Drama, Eventual Romance, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-09-03
Updated: 2019-09-08
Packaged: 2020-10-06 04:49:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,588
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20501156
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/shamefulmorana/pseuds/shamefulmorana
Summary: After certain events in late 2017, Griffin is adjusting to the new and strange that is his busy life. But he doesn't have to do it alone. Sometimes, help comes from the most unexpected places. (rating will increase, more characters will crop up)





	1. Aftermath

**Author's Note:**

> A/N: In case anyone needs a reminder, this is RPS/RPF. None of the words here represent any of the real thoughts and feelings of the people I’m writing about. This isn’t a conspiracy either. This is just a fictional re-telling of shit that happened back in 2017. 
> 
> This is purely written for myself. This is my way of letting Nick CoolGames go and Shipboys die. And a love letter to my fellow fans that were extremely let down. 
> 
> Hope you’re happy, antis. I’ll still be shipping Griffin McElroy with whomever I fucking please. xoxoxo

“Heard what happened. Sorry things had to go down that way...” Vernon sent the text without thinking too hard about it. He was sure that Griffin had a lot on his mind and had a lot of people messaging him about it. Still, he wanted to offer some kind of comfort; even if it was lost in his phone’s notifications.

Griffin read the text, just before throwing his phone back onto his bed. Shit. Griffin was still reeling from all that had been unfolding in the past twenty-four hours. When the news broke, he logged onto Discord, went to the source and heard it straight from the horse's mouth. After the initial call with him, Griffin had been drinking profusely in front of his TV before his wretched phone beckoned him to the bedroom.

Griffin paced the room, shaking his head. Then he sat down on the bed, picked up his phone and began to type furiously. His phone had been going off all day with notifications from all sorts. Vernon’s stood out at the top.

At this point, Vernon and Griffin were still not very close. They had met very briefly at Comic Con and exchanged numbers. Griffin learned fast that in order to get in touch with the game developer, he had to initiate. He assumed it had something to do with Vernon’s shy and fanboy-ish nature.

And yet, Griffin found himself pouring out his soul in the next few texts. “More like good riddance. There was always something about Nick. And yet none of us could put a finger on it. Not until it was too late, anyway.” Griffin sent.

“There’s no way you could’ve known,” Vernon replied.

“But there was.” Griffin swallowed, knowing he would regret this later, but right now the wounds were too raw and deep for him to care all that much about consequences, “You can’t tell a soul about this, but Nick and I were a thing. He was doing this all under my nose. The worst part was that everybody thought he was perfect. _I thought_ he was perfect. Cuz that’s what he wanted everybody to believe. Now I just feel stupid and betrayed.”

“I don’t know why am telling you this.” Griffin texted quickly after all of that. Immediately he threw himself further on the bed, outstretched arms, looking dead-eyed at the ceiling fan above, with his phone idle in the palm of his hand. A few tears escaped from his eyes and onto the comforter. Honestly, Griffin wasn’t expecting any kind of response. To get it out in the open was therapeutic enough.

For Vernon, it took awhile for the series of text to sink in. He was at a complete loss as what to say, at first. And then it dawned on him, “You know, I wasn’t around when Jon was on Grumps. But the fans had still held him with such high regard.” He started.

Griffin felt the phone vibrate so he brought it close to read. His drunken mind was racing when he saw the word bubble pop up while Vernon continued to type.

“I remember every other comment being just about Jon. ‘Where’s Jon? When’s Jon coming back? Get rid of Danny, bring Jon back.’ These strangers were insulting my friend, Danny, over the Internet's national treasure. He still had a looming shadow over our company, whether he liked it or not. He was this untouchable force that we couldn’t hide from.”

After reading the words carefully, Griffin found himself relating to them. Nick had been such a big part of the video side of the company. He had left some huge shoes to fill. Would he haunt the company?

“That is, until Jon made an absolute dick of himself. Once that happened, there was a sense of relief. Most of the comments of Jon had stopped. And more fans are getting to know Danny even better. For the better.” Vernon recalled, “So, sure there can be time for grief, but I can tell you even if he thinks he has some sort of hold on you or your company… You’ll do better.”

Vernon bit his lip after he sent the texts. He wasn’t sure what exactly Griffin wanted to hear, but he certainly tried his best.

Griffin simply stared at the words, so hard that he started to see them behind his eyelids. “You’ll do better.”

There was a part of Griffin that didn’t believe it, “How do you know?” he asked.

At that Vernon felt a bit flustered. How was he supposed to reassure someone whom he looked up to so much? “I don’t know? Time heals all wounds? Y’all will hire someone else? You’ll find someone new?”

Griffin gave his phone a broken smile and a small huff of laughter. He let the phone fall clumsily onto his chest as he closed his eyes. As cheesy as all of that sounded, Vernon was right. As much as his heart ached, he knew he would find someone better.

Still, the pain bubbled up inside of Griffin. It could have also been the acid reflux from his drinking and snacking, but he was a livewire of emotions.

“H- Hello?” A soft voice cracked over the phone, vibrating on Griffin’s chest.

Griffins eyes tore open and he gripped the phone to his ear. “Hello?” He replied.

“I… I didn’t realize you wanted to call me.” Vernon said.

“I- I think I must’ve hit the call button by accident.” Griffin said as he sat up slowly.

“Oh… I can hang up—“

“No!” Griffin exclaimed, “No, it’s okay, Vernon. I mean, unless you have to?”

“Oh! Uh, I can talk…”

“I just wanted to say thanks. You really hit the nail on the head.” Griffin said.

Vernon blushed, “Oh! No problem, dude. I’m uh…I’m here whenever you need me.” He said as though even he didn’t believe it.

“Sorry I subjected you to all this. Emotions are high right now, I guess.”

“It’s understandable…”

“I mean, you think you know a guy… An’ you give ‘em the world… An’ what does he do? Solicit to his fans… to my fans…”

There was a small pause, “Griffin, have you been drinking?” Vernon asked.

“On and off for a while now…” He admitted.

“Okay, I’m gonna need you to hang up, get a glass of water, drink it and then get to bed.”

“No no no! One more question… I just have one, one question… Vernon. Please.” Griffin whined, clutching the phone tighter in his grip, curled in on himself.

“Okay, what is it?” Vernon asked with a small smile.

“Do… Do you think I’m a good person?” Griffin asked quietly. Suddenly, there was a deafening silence between them before Griffin clarified. “This isn’t a trick question, I swear, Vernon. You can be honest to the Baby Brother, o- okay? I jus’ wanna know.” He needed to hear it from someone, anyone, that he was still a decent person. He had to be, right?

It made some sense to Vernon; if Nick was deemed a bad person by the Internet, would Griffin be looped into it? Vernon needed to reassure him, somehow.

“Griffin… You are one of the kindest, most genuine Internet celebrities that I’ve ever met.” Vernon admitted, “I’m not just saying that. It’s because you and your brothers are trying. You are all learning, growing and trying to make the world that much of a better place. So... yeah.”

At that, Griffin felt heat sting his cheeks. He reigned in his emotions by clearing his throat a little. “T- Thank you for saying so… Vernon.”

“Glad I could help. Now go get some sleep, okay? We can talk more later.”

Something about that prospect made Griffin’s heart flutter slightly. He nodded, “Okay, sure. Goodnight.”

“Night.”

And with that, Griffin hung up the call. He looked blankly at his phone, the lock screen of himself and Nick glaring at him. Griffin immediately began to weep openly for what seemed like ages, before he fell into a deep slumber.

**\-- A Year Later --**

It surprised Vernon that Griffin had been the one to recognize him this time, while they were both roaming the crowded halls of Comic Con. Then again, Vernon supposed that the pink Dream Daddy shirt certainly helped pull in Griffin’s attention. After their mutual exchanges, Vernon tried to make conversation.

“Heard about all you’re doing. A new comic, a tour… You McElroys sure are keeping yourselves busy, huh?” Vernon asked.

Griffin laughed. “Yeah, going into all this, I think we bit off a little more than we can chew. That’s why we left Polygon, after all.”

Vernon felt his heart sink a little when he heard that. He had read the initial post from Justin and Griffin with the rest of the world, but it made it no less hard to hear. “Dang. There go my hopes of scoring a ten out of ten McElroy review from Polygon.” He said with a broken smile.

At that, Griffin looked at Vernon. “I’m sure we could still do some kind of collab.”

Suddenly, Vernon felt his heart going a mile a minute, “Ever thought about turning The Adventure Zone into a visual novel?” He asked weakly.

“Well, Balance is a linear story… I’d hate to create a game that doesn’t give the players much of a choice…”

“Ahaha… Yeah. You’re right, that was dumb.” Vernon said, rubbing the back of his neck.

“...I heard you and your friends were starting up a touring company?” Griffin asked, curiously.

“Oh yeah! We’ve already got some people lined up for next year. It’s looking pretty great.”

“I know Arin said you only book YouTubers… but maybe we could work something out?”

Vernon looked bewildered at Griffin, as though he couldn’t believe what he had just heard. “S- sure! I’m sure we’d be happy to have you! Here- I’ll uh, I’ll give you Arin’s number…” He said as he fumbled for his phone.

“Sweet!” Griffin chirped before producing his own phone.

For some reason, in the back of Vernon’s mind, he felt the sting of doubt. Had he merely been a stepping stone for Griffin to contact Arin? Other Youtubers? The small thought plagued him as he and Griffin exchanged their goodbye’s.

**\-- A Few Months Later --**

The initial doubt turned into nothing but a shadow of a faint memory. Vernon and Griffin we’re officially on a mutual basis. They were past the awkward stages of their friendship and finally in a good place. They weren’t in daily contact (after all, Vernon didn’t want to mess this up by being some sort of daily texting stalker), but they had a comfortable balance.

They would share memes, talk about the latest news and even discuss their projects together. Griffin understood that Vernon was a creative lead on a lot of the Grumps’ productions. So, in confidence, they often talked about writing.

The business partnership between The McElroys and Real Good Touring was turning out to be the perfect fit. Before they launched, however, Vernon made it his mission to become a part of the McElroy touring team. If only to help manage the team so things would go smoothly.

Leighton saw right through Vernon’s plans. She knew it was all just to get closer to the McElroys, “So that’s how you’re going to pitch it to Arin? That you want to help manage the tour team?” She asked before she nursed her drink at the bar.

“I’ve done it before on the Grumps tour. I was invaluable.” Vernon said, pointing a finger at Leighton.

“...You handed out doughnuts to fans in line.” Leighton commented, her eyebrow arching in confusion.

“The fans appreciated it! I also made sure each venue had given the staff food. Food is very important for tours.” Vernon defended himself.

“You realize the McElroy crew is going to be big, with tighter security and that the fan turnout is going to be a helluva lot larger, right?” Leighton asked, “You wanna give out a dozen doughnuts to all of the first twelve fans in a line of a thousand?”

“I’m surprised you don’t have more faith in me, Leighton.” Vernon pouted.

“I’m trying to save you the embarrassment, Vern. Imagine if something goes horribly wrong. Let’s say Justin has a peanut allergy and he eats one of the nutty doughnuts. Griffin won’t forgive you, even if you unintentionally cause an allergic reaction.”

“Justin doesn’t have a peanut allergy…” Vernon said thoughtfully, “...does he?”

“I don’t know, Vernon! You’re their fanboy! I’m just trying to make a point. If you put yourself as a manager, you could risk putting a strain on your relationship with them.” Leighton said.

“I want this...” Vernon said in a low voice.

Leighton sighed. “Y’know, normal people who have long distance friends write them letters, send gifts in the mail or sometimes even visit them. But you want to manage his tour…” She laughed and shook her head, “Don’t say I didn’t warn you, Shaw.”

“So you’ll back me up?” He said, offering up his beer towards Leighton.

“...Yeah, alright. I’ll help you if Arin tells you no.” She said as she tapped her glass to his.

Vernon smiled widely, “Thank you, Leighton!” He cheered.

**\-- The Next Day --**

“You want to… what now?” Arin asked, stopping dead in his tracks. It was clear he had been headed to the office kitchen.

“I want to manage the McElroy tour.” Vernon said, a little louder than before. Leighton was nowhere near when he needed it, but he still confronted his boss.

Arin spun around to lock eyes with Vernon. “Vernon… we need you for our tour.” He said.

“...Do you?” Vernon asked in a sheepishly high voice.

Vernon felt Arin’s piercing glare. “You said that you’d help us with our dates already. We also already have a lot of man-power for the McElroy’s tour group. We can’t afford to switch you out this late in the game.”

“What do you mean ‘this late in the game’? They haven’t gone on tour with our company yet. There’s plenty of time.” Vernon defended.

“Vernon… you managing the McElroys is a lot of responsibility. There are contracts involved here, contracts that have been signed months ago.” Arin said.

“Then just put me on the team as an extra hand.” Vernon said with a shrug.

At that, Arin realized Vernon wasn’t budging. He also realized he wasn’t getting the bigger picture. By now, the entire open office was eyeing Vernon and Arin as they bantered back and forth, and Arin knew it. Without a word, Arin motioned Vernon to step into his office.

With a heavy heart, Vernon stepped through the threshold and sat down on the couch in front of Arin’s desk.

Before he shut the door, Arin called to Jack. “Make sure Dan knows I’m in a meeting with Vernon. I’ll be a few before I get back to recording.” He said.

Jack simply nodded and darted for the Grumps recording room.

“Okay... What’s this about, really?” Arin asked once the door was closed. “You want the McElroys to sign something? You want to interview them? Be on their show? What’s going on?” He asked as he moved to sit down behind his desk.

Vernon looked offended, “I just want to give them the best impression of our touring company. Leighton can vouch for me, I can call her right now.” he said.

Arin looked unmoved, “Vernon. I’m not an idiot. You tweeted about them being on Midnight on the DDaDDS twitter. Spill the beans already.”

At that, Vernon swallowed and blushed slightly. “I’ll admit, I am a pretty big fan of their stuff…”

“So I’ll buy you a pre-order of their graphic novel. Now can you please drop the nonsense about going on their tour?” Arin asked.

“I just… Look, I know you can’t force friendships. Griffin and I have been talking a lot more frequently as of late. I- I don’t want to ruin what we have going on. I just want to spend more time with him. And I think it’d be really neat to go on tour with them. To see what they’re all really like.” Vernon admitted.

For a long time, Arin simply stared at Vernon. “Well… I hope you won’t be disappointed.” Vernon’s heart began to swell, “I’ll put you on as co-manager. I can’t take this other guy off of the McElroy tour, he needs this job and he’s good at it. To replace him with you would look bad for all parties involved. No offense.” He added quickly at the end.

Vernon smiled widely, “Thank you, Arin.” he said.

“Make sure you sign the paperwork by the end of the day. I’ll let the McElroy’s know you’re coming on board. And don’t say I never did anything for you, alright?” Arin asked, handing over the documents with a playful wink and smile.

“Yeah, for sure. Thank you again.” Vernon said and took the papers with a nod.

Vernon walked out of Arin’s office like he was on cloud nine. He couldn’t believe it; he was going to go on tour with The McElroys.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope y'all are enjoying so far! I'm a bit out of practice, so it's possible there's a lot more dialogue than descriptors. I apologize. I hope to continue sometime soon.


	2. The Pieces

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The tour begins! But not before Griffin speaks his truth. Meanwhile... who is the ever mysterious tour manager?

“Soooo… who’d you have to kill to get on the tour team?” Griffin asked Vernon while they were in a casual Discord call. 

It was a good thing Vernon didn’t have a webcam available at his office computer. Otherwise, Griffin would have seen the guilt-ridden expression that flashed across his face. “No one!” He exclaimed. 

“Uh-huh, sure,” Griffin commented, “Y’know, I didn’t know there was even such a position as ‘co-manager’ in your guys’ touring company.” He was so familiar with the way Griffin spoke, Vernon could just _ hear _ the smug smile on his face. 

Suddenly, a sense of dread filled Vernon, “Do you not want me to go? Arin already said you guys don’t have to pay for my expenses.” He said, feeling panicked.

Laughter bubbled up in Griffin’s throat, “Aw, bud! I would love for you to tag along! I’m only teasing you. We all know how much you love our stuff. And it’ll be great to have a more familiar face on the crew.” He told him. 

“...’We’?” Vernon couldn’t help but ask.

“Well I mean, you’re the one who connected us with the touring company in the first place. So I might have bragged about you a little to the guys.” Griffin said, his ears and face feeling a little hot. “Travis even told me he’s a fan of Dream Daddy.” 

Vernon felt his throat go completely dry, “You all played my game?” He asked, bewildered. 

“Travis has. Don’t know about Justin or Dad. I wanted to, believe me, but my life was pretty... busy when it came out. I’ve been meaning to give it a shot, though.” 

“Yeah, your life was pretty hectic last year…”

Immediately, Griffin’s thoughts were plagued with Nick and his drama. He could feel a headache coming on. “Ugh. Don’t remind me.” He said in a low tone.

Vernon swallowed nervously, “This might be a silly idea but… maybe we can play DDaDDs on the tour? I mean like… between venues. Not like… on stage or anything.” 

Griffin didn’t like to make promises he couldn’t keep, and yet he shrugged, “If we ever find some down time, sure.” He said. 

“I’ll download it to my laptop, then.” Vernon said, trying to hide the excitement bubbling in his voice. “I’m excited for the tour.” 

“Yeah, I’m looking forward to it too.” Griffin found himself admitting with a small smile. After a pause, he noticed the time. Sure enough; he saw his Discord was lighting up with new notifications. “Aw shit. I’ve gotta go. The boys are pinging me.” 

“Ah! Okay then. Good luck with recording, Griffin.” Vernon said. 

“Thanks, bud.” Griffin chimed before hanging up his call. At his desk, Griffin adjusted his chair and turned on his better microphone. After that, he clicked on the Discord channel where they recorded My Brother My Brother and Me. In that channel, Griffin could only see Justin had joined. 

“Yo!” Justin greeted. 

“Heya, Juice. How’s it going?” Griffin asked. 

“Eh it’s alright. Noticed you were labelled busy, wasn’t sure if you’d get our notifications or not.” Justin said in a nonchalant tone. 

“I was in a call, if you must know.”

“Oh?” Justin sounded intrigued. 

“Yeah it was with our touring company.” Griffin said with a flat tone.

“Oh…” 

“What? Were you hoping it was some secret girlfriend?”

“Griffin’s got a secret girlfriend?!” A large and booming voice exclaimed, Travis had joined in the call.

“No, Travis, I don’t have a secret girlfriend.” Griffin shot down immediately. 

“That’s right Trav, he’s got a secret _ boyfriend _.” Justin teased with a chuckle. 

Griffin felt his heart pounding in his ears when he heard that. Instinctively, he drew away from the microphone to take in a deep breath. 

The pause was way too long for Justin’s comfort, “Griff, I was just… I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have… You don’t have to tell him…” He didn’t know where to begin.

“Uuh… what’s happening? Tell who what now?” Travis asked. 

Though his throat felt dry, he brought himself closer to his microphone. “No, I… I need to start living in my truth. If I can’t be honest with all of my family, even if it’s _ just _ my family… I couldn’t… I wouldn’t be able to live with myself.” 

Just like that, the pieces came together in Travis’ mind. Still, he allowed his baby brother to talk. 

“This needs to stay in the family, understand? Travis, I’m a… a bisexual man. I’ve dated women and men before.” Griffin said.

Travis simply shrugged, “That’s great to hear, Griffin. You didn’t have to tell me, but I’m glad you did. I’m surprised Justin found out first.” He said, feeling just a little jealous of their older brother. 

“I… I told him first because… Well Trav, do you remember Nick Robinson?” Griffin asked, sheepishly.

“Nick Rob… Oh! … Oh…” Travis remembered and understood all at once. Justin and Griffin had both been Nick’s co-workers. It was only natural for something like that to slip. 

“Yeah…” Griffin said, “We started dating sometime after we started that stupid podcast. We broke it off when the fans came forward with the accusations. After he told me it was all true.” The anger in his voice was subtle, but enough for his siblings to pick up.

“What an asshole!” Travis exclaimed. It hurt Griffin a little to hear that, but Travis wasn’t wrong so he didn’t correct him. “He was dating you while going behind your back and getting nudes from fans?! That little _fucker_.” 

“Yeah…”

Justin heard Travis’ steaming at this revelation, but he wanted to change the subject; if only to stop Griffin from reflecting on the past. They all needed to be in a better mood in order to focus on creating their best content. “Well I’m just glad you finally told Trav. Sorry it wasn’t really on your terms…” He said.

“It’s alright, Juice. I was gonna tell him eventually.” Griffin said.

“...So does this mean there _ is _ a secret boyfriend?” Travis teased.

“I think… I might have a crush… on a guy.” Griffin said in a small voice, a blush rising to his cheeks. 

“Called it!” Justin barked over Travis’ gleeful laughter. 

“It’s just a crush, Juice. That’s all y’all are getting from me. Now can we _ please _ record our podcast?” Griffin begged. 

The other two agreed before Griffin hit the record button. Honestly, Griffin felt even more liberated now that someone else in the family knew ‘his truth’. He wasn’t sure why it took him so long to tell Travis, but he was glad that he did. Griffin felt a lot lighter as they recorded their podcast. 

**\-- Weeks Later --**

Vernon rounded the corner, sweeping his eyes along the huge crowd that gathered at the airport baggage claim. He knew Chicago was one of the bigger airports, still, he didn’t anticipate just how large it really was. 

Which was why he was surprised how quickly he found the four McElroys, off in the distance and wearing their anti-celebrity gear. All three wore distinct hats, sunglasses and hoodies to deter second glances. With them, was a man dressed with a sharp jacket and a button up shirt. Vernon saw all of them talking between each other very casually.

As Vernon drew closer, Griffin apparently caught his stare. Vernon saw Griffin excuse himself and sidestep towards his direction. Vernon felt like he was watching him purely in slow motion; seeing the suave way he moved over, taking off his sunglasses and placing them on his head. “Hey bud! It’s good to see you.” Griffin greeted, extending his hand and giving a smile. 

“Good to see you, too.” Vernon said as he took Griffin’s hand and felt himself melting once Griffin pulled him into a hug. 

“How was the trip for you? A lot longer, I assume.” Griffin asked once he pulled away.

“Well yeah. LA isn’t as central as Austin.. Still, pretty nice and convenient that we all arrived at the same time.”

“I’ll say! The collaborative effort between our guy and your guy is looking very promising!” Griffin looked around the airport, “Where is he anyway? I’d like to meet Mr. Kramer.”

Up until this point, Vernon had no idea who had been written in as the McElroy’s tour manager. He had assumed it was someone whom he had never heard of. But as soon as Griffin dropped that last name, it hit him like a ton of bricks. 

“Kramer?” Vernon asked.

“Barry Kramer, your personal tour manager, at your service!” a chipper voice called out, just before Vernon felt a hand on his shoulder.

Vernon looked and did a double take once he saw Barry with his own eyes. “Barry?” he asked, feeling very confused, “How did we not see each other? Wouldn’t we have been on the same flight?”

“I was coming out of Burbank instead of LAX, so… no.” 

Out of the corner of his eye, Vernon saw the other McElroys and the well dressed man approach them. 

“Nice to meet you, Barry. I’m Griffin McElroy.” Griffin introduced, extending a hand.

“Nice to meet you!” Barry said as he took Griffin’s hand. Once the others gathered, Barry reintroduced himself. “My name is Barry Kramer, I’m your tour manager. If y’all have any questions or concerns about the itinerary, the venue, the staff, the hotels or where the best places to gallivant around, let me know! I’m your information sponge, and I’m here to… uh, ring out that info… on you, I guess? That was a horrible image. I’m sorry.” 

Travis gave Barry a smirk, “Nah, I liked it, you can keep going with it.” He said. 

“Is the information being ringed out on top of us, or like, in our mouths?” Their father asked.

“On? I guess?” Barry simply chuckled before moving on, “Oh! And uh, feel free to ask Vernon here anything you might ask me as well.” He said as he clapped Vernon’s shoulder once more, “He is co-manger, after all.” 

Vernon raised his hand and gave a weak smile, “Hi…” He said. 

The well dressed man in their presence saw the baggage claim conveyor belt begin to move, and decided to point it out. “Guys, I believe your bags are coming in.” He mentioned. With that, the four McElroys scattered and the man turned towards Barry and Vernon. 

“My name is Joel Begleiter. I’m the boys’ manager. I just wanted to clarify things with the both of you before going forward. If that’s alright?” Joel asked. 

“Oh yeah, sure thing.” Barry said. 

“The reason these guys hired me was because I provide them not only with great representation, y'know, get them through the door in certain circles and provide them with Hollywood-aligned jobs... but I also offer services to protect their privacy.” Joel explained. 

“Their privacy is the highest priority for them and myself. As it should be for you and your team.” Joel said in a low and vaguely threatening tone. “This means that locations the boys visit are to be talked about or tagged in on social media the day after. If someone on your team mingles with them, their gps location on their phones must be off. They must be escorted by at least one designated bodyguard or tour staff at all times. Failure to comply means-“

“A breach of contract.” Barry finished, “We’re well aware of the contract, Mr. Begleiter. You’ve got nothin’ to worry about. We made this company because we want to cater to the needs of creatives like us, without any form of sketchy-ness. We’ve hired staff sensitive to those needs and value your clients caution and privacy. Trust us!”

“Well… alright, as long as you think you can handle it. I’ll be leaving back to New York after tonight’s event, assuming things go well. If anything comes up during the tour… here’s my card.” Joel said as he handed over his card. 

Barry took it and placed it in his wallet. “Sure thing, Mr. Begleiter.” He said as Joel turned away. 

Vernon let go of a large breath that he had been holding. “Barry, I don’t know how you we’re so calm during all that.” He said with admiration.

Barry looked at Vernon, “I’ll be honest, it was a lot easier when I started looking at him like an overprotective parent.” He shrugged.

At that moment, Barry saw Vernon’s attention being grabbed by the McElroys. They saw that all four of them had all grabbed their suitcases and were making their way towards the airport exit. Barry gave Vernon a smile. 

“Y’know, Arin told me why you wanted in so bad. Joel already said you’re free to mingle.” Barry said, offering a small gesture towards their tour stars. 

Vernon looked torn when he said, “It’s- It’s okay. We’ll be seeing them a lot. I feel like they need some space for… family stuff. Yeah. I’m all yours, Barry.” 

Barry shrugged, “Whatever you say, Vernon.”

**\--- Later ---**

“Griffy, you wanna go check in and see what’s keeping Juice?” Griffin heard his father ask.

All of the McElroys had been sitting patiently at the table of this restaurant only hours after touching down in Chicago. They had ordered waters before Justin got the bright idea and order something for them at the bar. However, that had been almost fifteen minutes ago. At one point they had to politely turn away their waiter.

It took Griffin a moment to survey the lay of the land. Once he found the back of his brother’s head, he accepted his father’s request. “Yeah, okay.” He said before getting up.

Justin swirled around in the bar stool provided for him and gave Griffin a devilish look. Griffin recoiled in confusion. “Hello, Griffin.” Justin purred. 

“Uuuh… Juice? What’s the hold up? And why are you looking at me like that?” Griffin asked. 

Justin’s smile only grew wider. “Travis and I are playing a little game. So, I thought you might want some light on the situation. Since it _ does _ involve you.” 

“...I’m _ really _ afraid to ask.” Griffin said, pulling up to a bar stool next to Justin. 

“No need! You see… Travis and I are going to try to figure out your crush.” Justin said.

At this, Griffin glared directly at Justin. “Why is this so important to you assholes? And why now?” He asked.

“It’s just a bit of fun! We won’t announce it to the world or anything, we promise. We just want to know, and we’d thought it would be fun to figure it out on our own.” Justin said, “As for why now… well… Do you remember the day you came out to Travis?”

It was a little hazy now, but Griffin did recall. “Yeah?” He asked.

“On that day, you said you were in a call… With our touring company.” Justin said, with the biggest shit-eating grin that Griffin hadn’t seen in a long while.

“Oh come on, Juice. That’s your only lead? Please.” Griffin said, scoffing at his older sibling. It surprised Griffin how suddenly he shifted gears from not wanting any of this, to indulging in his brother’s detective-like fantasy. 

“Not the only lead, no. Only a day prior to that conversation, we had someone new come on board to the touring team. You and dad are the only ones who know who, but I have a _ distinct _ feeling that it's the same person you have a crush on.” Justin said confidently. 

“Now you’re just pulling shit out of nowhere.” Griffin laughed. 

“Oh? So who was it, then, Griffin? Who was this absolutely necessary employee that we needed for this tour? Who’s the individual we all couldn’t do without?” Justin asked.

Griffin opted to ignore Justin’s questions, “You realize this ‘game’ of yours is fucking stupid and sounds like something a sociopath would do, right?” He asked.

“Well we’re doing it anyway.” Justin said as though he had won an argument. “Also, none of that sounded like denial, Griffin.” He said in a sing-song kind of way.

“Fuck you guys.” Griffin said as he stood up and walked away from the bar. 

Ultimately, Griffin didn’t want to stop them from discovering his secret crush. He hoped it would keep them busy from elbowing and punching each other whenever they found out of state license plates. And as long as they kept their word and didn’t tell another soul, Griffin didn’t care. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I still feel incredibly rusty, but I'm enjoying writing this! Hope you guys are enjoying it as well. <3

**Author's Note:**

> Hope y'all are enjoying so far! I'm a bit out of practice, so it's possible there's a lot more dialogue than descriptors. I apologize. I hope to continue sometime soon.


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